Contacts With Vegetative State Patients

               Recently, we were surprised by news of a great importance for both the medical field and for the believers in physical-spiritual duality. Those news narrate that  studies carried out by European doctors indicate that patients in coma maintain consciousness and are not limited to being just a "vegetable" lying on bed, without any conscience. Transcription of the news:

Vegetative state patients can respond to questions

Scientists have been able to reach into the mind of a brain-damaged man and communicate with his thoughts.

               The research, carried out in the UK and Belgium, involved a new brain scanning method. Awareness was detected in three other patients previously diagnosed as being in a vegetative state.

               The study in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that scans can detect signs of awareness in patients thought to be closed off from the world. Patients in a vegetative state are awake, not in a coma, but have no awareness because of severe brain damage.

Scanning technique

               The scientists used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) which shows brain activity in real time. They asked patients and healthy volunteers to imagine playing tennis while they were being scanned.

               In each of the volunteers this stimulated activity in the pre-motor cortex, part of the brain which deals with movement.

               This also happened in four out of 23 of the patients presumed to be in a vegetative state.

               The journalist volunteered to test out the scanning technique.

               I gave the scientists two women's names, one of which was my mother's. I imagined playing tennis when they said the right name, and within a minute they had worked out her name. They were also able to guess correctly whether I had children.

Questions

               This is a continuation of research published three years ago, when the team used the same technique to establish initial contact with a patient diagnosed as vegetative. But this time they went further. With one patient - a Belgian man injured in a traffic accident seven years ago - they asked a series of questions.

               He was able to communicate "yes" and "no" using just his thoughts.

               The team told him to use "motor" imagery like a tennis match to indicate "yes" and "spatial" imagery like thinking about roaming the streets for a "no".

               The patient responded accurately to five out of six autobiographical questions posed by the scientists.

               For example, he confirmed that his father's name was Alexander.

               The study involved scientists from the Medical Research Council (MRC), the Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre in Cambridge and a Belgian team at the University of Liege.

               Dr Adrian Owen from the MRC in Cambridge co-authored the report:

               "We were astonished when we saw the results of the patient's scan and that he was able to correctly answer the questions that were asked by simply changing his thoughts."

               Dr Owen says this opens the way to involving such patients in their future treatment decisions: "You could ask if patients were in pain and if so prescribe painkillers and you could go on to ask them about their emotional state."

               It does raise many ethical issues - for example - it is lawful to allow patients in a permanent vegetative state to die by withdrawing all treatment, but if a patient showed they could respond it would not be, even if they made it clear that was what they wanted.

               The Royal Hospital for Neurodisability in London is a leading assessment and treatment centre for adults with brain injuries.

               Helen Gill, a consultant in low awareness state, welcomed the new research but cautioned that it was still early days for the research: "It's very useful if you have a scan which can show some activity but you need a detailed sensory assessment as well.

               "A lot of patients are slipping through the net and this adds another layer to ensure patients are assessed correctly."

               She said the hospital did a study of 60 patients admitted with a diagnosis of vegetative state and 43% could communicate.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8497148.stm

Our recordings

               These news encouraged us to publish here experiments which we suggest a doctor friend to carry out.

History

               Around 6 months ago, Dr. Vanessa Schilling attended a workshop with us to learn how to do specific recordings.  It was already  her interest to develop a research project involving the health field as,  for example, use the knowlege of deceased doctors to confirm diagnosis. 

               She treats some children with neuropathies (in a vegetative state or in coma) of such severity that consciousness is not expected to return, causing them to stay in this state for many years.

               On a Sunday afternoon, during her work hours, Vanessa called us regarding a possible contact with those children. As she had  her laptop with her, we incentivated her to try it. We remember the recordings done in the 70's by a Hungarian man living in Sao Paulo, George Magyari, one of the Brazilian pioneers in transcontacts, who had recorded, in his simple tape-recorder, a friend who was hospitalized in a coma.  We mentioned that case in our book Instrumental Transcommunication- Contacts with Beyond Through Technical Means.  The transcomunicator narrated that his friend had been recorded in a desperate cry for help to be able to die, due to the fact that the doctors kept his body alive through machines, not allowing him to pass.

               Vanessa, although expressing doubt, decided to test it.  Initially, she tried to contact "Mister German" at ICU.  For her surprise, she received clear answers. 

               Days later, enthusiastic by the first results, Dr. Vanessa recorded again.  At this time, in a more objective way, besides a brain damaged thirteen year old girl, in this state for a long time.

From this recording, and observing the high clearness of the replies, we detected the following results:

Coment: It is important to highlight that this girl has been suffering from a neuropatghic condition since she was born. Thefore, she might dream in eating a solid food.

Would it be possible that someone take children in coma for an active life in the Spiritual World, make it possible for them study or go for a walk?

This statement is one of the most interesting, because it shows that children in a coma are assisted by spiritual guards who take them for walks out the hospital.

In fact, the girl's grandfather sometimes shows up. Vanessa had not known about those visits. Later, she confirmed it occurs.

Vanessa knew that Sonia was having some dificulties at that time and asked for a message. In fact, new ways  opened to her.

However, the most interesting recording happened during Vanessa's third attempt. At that time, beside a 3 years old boy bed, in a vegetative state too, she obtained the following dialogue:

Besides his vegetative state, the boy manifests as making the recording a game.

The words  "down here" may refer to our  physical world - which means he lives between both worlds - physical and spiritual, due his condition.

Amazing that the kid named himself, since in the hospital he is called by his nickname, Kaike and not by Carlos, his real name..

The dialogue flows.

Remarkable response, because the doctor suggested that he could not speak and he opposed it, saying that yes, he can.

The child seems excited because for the first time someone is confident that he really can respond.

I think this replyt was the most touching of all because, although this child has lived in a hospital for years, he shows a huge concern to his mother.

Important revelation.

Thus, although the Europeans have achieved a scientific milestone for the medical field by carrying out an important research, in a very modest way we are also making a little.

The difference is the fact they could perform their research officially, as well as financially supported, with scientist who do not fear to have their names involved in something that might point to the independence of mind from  brain, and within all rigor which Science requires. The facts ensure them a deserved worldwide acceptance. But much more could be achieved in the spiritual research if we had, perhaps, 5% of the support they have.